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Dentons is pleased to announce that the Firm has been ranked in 99 categories in the 2018 edition of The Legal 500 UK, and a total of 226 Dentons lawyers have been recognised across their respective practice areas.

In Lee v. Ashers Baking Company Limited and Others, the Supreme Court considered whether a bakery's refusal to supply a cake with a slogan supporting gay marriage was discriminatory on the grounds of sexual orientation or political opinion

With 174 locations in 78 countries, Dentons is home to top-tier talent that is found at the intersection of geography, industry knowledge and substantive legal experience. Working with Dentons, you will have the opportunity to learn from the best lawyers in the industry at the largest law firm in the world.

Dentons, the world’s largest law firm, has launched a new Market Insights publication entitled “Digital Transformation and the Digital Consumer”, which examines the legal implications of the online economy.

Dentons is pleased to celebrate the first anniversary of the Firm's combination with Maclay Murray & Spens, creating a UK footprint of six offices: three in England (London, Milton Keynes and Watford) and three in Scotland (Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen).

Right to work checks: extended criminal offence provisions in force from 12 July 2016

Right to work checks: extended criminal offence provisions in force from 12 July 2016

Right to work checks: extended criminal offence provisions in force from 12 July 2016

Regional Capabilities:

July 12, 2016

The Immigration Bill, which passed into law in May 2016, highlighted among other things the government’s tough new approach to tackling illegal working. As of 12 July 2016, provisions of the new Immigration Act which broaden the definition of what constitutes a criminal offence in relation to employing illegal workers came into force, meaning that carrying out full right to work checks before employees commence any work is now even more crucial for employers.

It is already a criminal offence to employ an illegal worker, but only if the employer knows for a fact that they are working illegally. From 12 July 2016 however, the offence is committed if the employer knows, or has “reasonable cause to believe”, that a person is working illegally – a much lower legal threshold. Together with the lower threshold comes an increase in the maximum penalty, now up to five years’ imprisonment compared with the current two.

Now, where an employer simply suspects illegal working, they should proactively investigate the individual’s immigration status in order to be satisfied that the relevant consents are in place. Allowing an individual to work during any period where there is a question mark over their status could result in criminal sanctions on top of the existing civil penalty of up to £20,000 per illegal worker.

For the workers themselves, the Act also creates a new criminal offence and any work without appropriate permission could earn them up to six months’ imprisonment, a fine or both. They could even have their earnings seized.

Employers would be wise to ensure that they have robust processes and procedures in place for carrying out right to work checks and that these are disseminated to all employees who are involved in recruitment and/or management of staff.

Our immigration team is available should you have any queries, training requirements or if you wish to arrange a compliance check of your HR systems.

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